MTJ Device Performance by Controlling Device Shape

ABSTRACT

A layered thin film device, such as a MTJ (Magnetic Tunnel Junction) device can be customized in shape by sequentially forming its successive layers over a symmetrically curved electrode. By initially shaping the electrode to have a concave or convex surface, the sequentially formed layers conform to that shape and acquire it and are subject to stresses that cause various crystal defects to migrate away from the axis of symmetry, leaving the region immediately surrounding the axis of symmetry relatively defect free. The resulting stack can then be patterned to leave only the region that is relatively defect free.

PRIORITY DATA

The present application is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/195,317, filed Mar. 8, 2021, which is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/810,494, filed Nov. 13, 2017, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

This disclosure relates generally to magnetic memory devices, specifically to the effect of the shape of a device on its performance.

2. Description of the Related Art

The crystalline property of the structure of a magnetic memory device, specifically that of the ferromagnetic/MgO tunneling barrier interface of a MTJ (magnetic tunneling junction) device, plays a very critical role in the device performance. In particular, the strain in the structure can significantly alter the properties of the device, for reasons to be discussed below.

Magnetic memory devices comprise a stack of layers in which two ferromagnetic layers, typically referred to as a reference layer and a free layer, are separated by a thin, non-magnetic dielectric layer, called a barrier layer. In the classical physics regime, a current of electrons going from one ferromagnetic layer to the other would be unable to pass through the barrier layer, which is non-conducting; but according to quantum mechanics, electrons can “tunnel” through the barrier layer if the right conditions exist in terms of the spin of the tunneling electrons and the magnetization directions of the two ferromagnetic layers on either side of the barrier. The conditions necessary for the electrons to successfully tunnel also depend on the quality of the interfaces between the barrier layer and the ferromagnetic layers. Imperfections in the interfaces make it difficult to achieve high TMR (Tunneling Magneto Resistance) values, which measure the ability of the electrons to successfully tunnel when the proper magnetization conditions are met. Such imperfections result from lattice mismatches between the ferromagnetic layers and the non-magnetic barrier layer and from defects that occur during crystal growth of materials. These undesirable qualities are associated with strain which, in turn, causes reduction in the TMR values, as has been documented, for example, in “Strain-enhanced tunneling magnetoresistance in MgO magnetic tunnel junctions,” by Li Ming Long et al., Scientific Reports 4, Article number 6505 (2014) and also “Tuning the magnetic anisotropy of CoFeB grown on flexible substrates” by Zhang Hao et al. in Chinese Physics B, Volume 24, Number 7-077501 (2015)

Given the fact that the shape of a crystalline layer affects the stresses and strains in the layer which, in turn, affects the growth of defects in that layer, controlling layer shape should permit a corresponding control of and even a purposeful manipulation of the stresses in an MTJ film stack. Therefore, such a shape controlling process should enable improvements in device performance, for example, improving the TMR and the coercivity of the device. More specifically, the new shape of a device, if properly designed and produced, can be expected to reduce the interface defect concentration and improve interface lattice epitaxy, all of which will improve device performance.

Attempts to influence device performance by shape control are known in the prior art, for example, Ahn et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 7,998,758) and Kim et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 9,305,928). However these attempts do not use the same methods or produce the same effects as will be described herein.

SUMMARY

A first object of the present disclosure is to provide a method of improving the performance of a layered MTJ device by controlling its shape.

A second object of the present disclosure is to provide such a method that reduces interfacial defect concentrations and lattice mismatches and improves lattice epitaxy, thereby creating a measurable improvement in TMR.

A third object of the present disclosure is to provide such a method that allows controlling and manipulating the shape of a layered device during its fabrication, in effect customizing its shape.

A fourth object of the present disclosure is to control the stresses in a TMJ layered film stack or similar device structure by controlling its shape so that the stresses thereby cause crystal defects to migrate towards regions of the structure that can be subsequently removed.

These objects will be achieved through the design and fabrication of a patterned, layered MTJ device during which its shape is controlled in such a manner that crystal defects such as vacancies, pinholes and dislocations within the stack are moved to an undesirable weak zone which can subsequently be removed. The relatively defect-free remaining portion of the device will have a higher coercivity and improved TMR values. The new device shape will, therefore, reduce the interface defect concentration and improve the interface lattice epitaxy, both results leading to improvement of device performance as, for example, measured by the improved TMR values.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a prior art MTJ device.

FIG. 2 schematically shows a dome-shaped bottom electrode for the device in FIG. 1 in accord with the method of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 schematically shows the effects on the formation of a layered MTJ stack when the stack is formed over the dome-shaped electrode of FIG. 2 .

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration showing the effects of patterning the stack of FIG. 3 , so that laterally disposed regions of the stack containing defects resulting from its formation over a dome-shaped electrode are eliminated.

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of an alternative electrode which is concave rather than convex as is the dome-shaped electrode.

FIG. 6 is a schematic illustration, analogous to that of FIG. 3 , but now showing the effects of forming a MTJ stack over the concave electrode of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration showing the effects of patterning the stack of FIG. 6 , so that laterally disposed regions of the stack containing defects resulting from its formation over a concave electrode are eliminated.

FIG. 8 is a process flow diagram showing the sequence of steps that lead to the structure illustrated in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 9 is a process flow diagram showing the sequence of steps that lead to the structure illustrated in FIG. 4 .

FIG. 10 is a process flow diagram showing the sequence of steps that lead to the structure illustrated in FIG. 7 .

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring first to FIG. 1 , there is shown a standard patterned MTJ (Magnetic Tunneling Junction) layered device such as is commonly used in a random access memory (RAM) array. Although a specific substrate is not necessary to define the device, for specificity we will consider the device to be formed on a functional substrate, such as a CMOS substrate, that may already include circuitry and conducting vias to access various elements of the devices in a RAM array.

The device is formed by first providing a CMOS substrate 10 on which to form it. A blanket bottom electrode (BE) 20 is deposited on the CMOS substrate so that it properly contacts the vias in that substrate. There is then deposited on top of the bottom electrode 20, in succession, a series of horizontal layers that will comprise the MTJ stack. Those layers include, a seed layer 30, a pinned magnetic layer 40, a tunnel barrier layer 50, a free magnetic layer 60 and capping layer 70. A hard mask 80 is deposited on the capping layer. The hard mask is then patterned by a standard photolithographic process (not shown) and the film stack is then patterned using the patterned hard mask as a guide. Note that the bottom electrode is also shown as patterned and it is surrounded laterally by dielectric fill material 90.

The process steps (801-807) leading to the formation of the typical prior art MTJ as shown in FIG. 1 and described in detail above, can be summarized in the flow diagram 800 shown in FIG. 8 .

We will now describe the method of the present disclosure as illustrated with reference to FIG. 2 -FIG. 4 . We note at the outset that the method will be described with reference to an MTJ device, but it is applicable to any layered, crystalline structure that can be expected to accumulate various types of defects as it is grown.

Like the prior-art method described by the process flow chart in FIG. 1 , above, the method of the present disclosure also begins with a CMOS substrate 10 (although other substrates are also possible) and, on this substrate a bottom electrode layer 20 formed of conducting material is deposited. However, the present method deviates from the prior-art method above by patterning and etching the electrode to form a “dome” (i.e., a symmetrical convex) shape 25, as is shown in FIG. 2 . Note that the “dome” or convex shape, is here axially (about a horizontal axis) symmetric, so it is more correctly a cylinder (or a semi-circular cylinder if the convex shape has a semi-circular cross-section).

There are several methods by which the electrode can be formed with a surface having a convex, cylindrical shape, or indeed, by which an electrode can be formed with various surface shapes other than a convex shape, such as a concave shape to be discussed below. For example, an initial etch can be performed on a layer of electrode material to create a solid rectangular prism and then a partial etch (or series of partial etches) can be performed that successively removes corners of the electrode to give it the rounded surface shape. Alternatively, a sputter etch can be performed to produce a rounded surface shape. To form a concave surface, isotropic physical etching can be performed.

Referring next to schematic FIG. 3 , there is shown the result of a sequential deposition process in which there is first deposited on the convex cylindrical electrode 25, a seed layer 35, which is followed by a pinned layer 45, a barrier layer 55, a free layer 65, a capping layer 75 and a hard mask layer 85. These layers will all conform to the shape of the electrode, by each layer conforming, in sequence, to the shaped layers beneath it. For definiteness we note that the above process steps can be applied to a typical MTJ structure having a seed layer of Ta, Ru, W or NiCr with a thickness range of between approximately 50-500 A (angstroms), ferromagnetic layers for pinned and free layers formed of CoFeB with a thickness range between approximately 10-100 A, a tunneling barrier layer of AlOx or MgO of thickness between approximately 5-50 A and a capping layer of Ta, W or Mg with a thickness range between approximately 10-100 A. The convex electrode can have a thickness of between approximately 100-1000 nm and have a width between approximately 50-500 nm.

Due to the underlying convex shape, as successive layers are formed and develop their crystalline structure, the inevitable defects produced by the crystal growth mechanism, such as pinholes, vacancies and dislocations, will move away (migrate) from the top of the convexity of each successively formed layer and accumulate at the corners where the underlying curved shape of the electrode becomes a horizontal layer. This is what is called the “weak” region of the structure (see the region surrounded by an ellipse 90).

The region of the stack containing a small region to either side of the peak of the convex structure will be relatively defect free. By controlling the slope (curvature) of the convexity, the film strain can be manipulated, and the lattice mismatch and interfacial defect concentration can be reduced within a desired region symmetrically disposed to either side of the peak of the convex structure. Note that the width of the convexity that can be considered relatively defect free can cover most of the total width of the curved region with exception of the weak regions 90 at the corners. In most cases, more than half of the width of the convexity, centered about its highest point can be considered defect free. For example, an electrode having a base width of 200 nm will produce a defect free device shape of at least 100 nm.

After the convex structure is patterned to produce the vertical stack, which is actually a cylindrical slice, as shown in schematic FIG. 4 , the gaps to either side 110 are filled with a gap-filling dielectric material (not shown) and the upper surfaces of the stack and its surrounding dielectric are planarized and polished to remove the mask layer in preparation for further process integration. Note that FIG. 9 is a process flow 900 that briefly describes the sequence of steps (901-906) that lead to the structure in FIG. 4 .

Referring next to schematic FIG. 5 , there is shown an alternative embodiment of the present process where the bottom electrode 27 is shaped to have a concave upper surface and is otherwise axially symmetric.

Referring next to FIG. 6 , there is shown that the film stack of the MTJ (or any layered crystalline construction) can be deposited over the concave bottom electrode 27 in the same manner as it was deposited over the previously described convex electrode. FIG. 6 , shows schematically the result of a sequential deposition process in which there is first deposited on the concave electrode 27 a seed layer 37, which is followed by a pinned layer 47, a barrier layer 57, a free layer 67, a capping layer 77 and a hard mask layer 87. These layers will all try to conform to the concave shape of the electrode, by each layer conforming, in sequence, to the concave-shaped layers beneath it. Note that the material layers can be formed of the same materials and dimensions as described above for the convex structure.

Due to the underlying concave shape, as successive layers are formed and develop their crystalline structure, the inevitable defects produced by the crystal growth mechanism, such as pinholes, vacancies and dislocations, will move away (migrate) from the bottom point of the concavity of each layer and accumulate at the upper corners where the concavity, discontinuously, merges with the horizontal layer of the substrate 10. The region of the stack containing a small region to either side of the concave minimum will be relatively defect free. This region surrounding the discontinuity, called a “weak” region, is shown enclosed in an elliptical region 100. It is at this weak region that defects will accumulate. By controlling the shape of the electrode 27 the film strain in the sequentially deposited layers can be manipulated, and the lattice mismatch and interfacial defect concentration can be reduced in a specific region.

After the concave-shaped structure is patterned to produce the vertical stack that now contains the defect-free bottom of the concavity, as shown in schematic FIG. 7 , the gaps to either side 110 are filled with a gap-filling dielectric material and the upper surfaces of the stack and its surrounding dielectric are planarized and polished in preparation for further process integration (not shown).

Note that FIG. 10 is a process flow 1000 that briefly describes the sequence of steps (1001-1006) that lead to the structure in FIG. 7 .

As is finally understood by a person skilled in the art, the detailed description given above is illustrative of the present disclosure rather than limiting of the present disclosure. Revisions and modifications may be made to methods, materials, structures and dimensions employed in forming and providing a layered crystalline magnetic device such as an MTJ device, whose layer strain is controlled during layer formation to reduce crystal defects and thereby to improve device performance, while still forming and providing such a structure and its method of formation in accord with the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: forming a stack of magnetic tunneling junction (MTJ) layers on a substrate, wherein the stack of MTJ layers includes a first layer and a second layer, wherein the first layer and the second layer in the stack of MTJ layers acquire a respective curved top surface from the forming of the stack of MTJ layers, wherein defects associated with forming the first layer and the second layer in the stack of MTJ layers migrate to outer portions of the first layer and the second layer during the forming of the stack of MTJ layers, wherein the curved top surface of the first layer in the stack of MTJ layers spans a first distance over the substrate and the curved top surface of the second layer in the stack of MTJ layers spans a second distance after the forming of the stack of MTJ layers, wherein the first and second distances are measured along a first direction that is substantially parallel to a top surface of the substrate; and removing the outer portions of the first and second layers that contain defects.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second distance is greater than the first distance.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first layer is a pinned layer and the second layer is a tunnel barrier layer.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first layer is a tunnel barrier layer and the second layer is a free layer.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising forming an electrode layer on the top surface of the substrate prior forming the stack of MTJ layers.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the electrode layer has a convex top surface after the forming of the electrode layer on the top surface of the substrate, and wherein the forming of the stack of MTJ layers on the substrate includes forming the stack of MTJ layer on the convex top surface of the electrode layer.
 7. The method of claim 5, wherein the electrode layer has a concave top surface after the forming of the electrode layer on the top surface of the substrate, and wherein the forming of the stack of MTJ layers on the substrate includes forming the stack of MTJ layer on the concave top surface of the electrode layer.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein a remaining portion of the first layer of the stack of MTJ layers is relatively free of defects after the removing of the outer portion of the first layer of the stack of MTJ layers.
 9. A method comprising: inducing strain in a first layer of a stack of magnetic tunneling junction (MTJ) layers disposed on a top surface of a substrate to cause defects in the first layer to migrate from a second portion of the first layer to a first portion of the first layer, wherein the first portion of the first layer has a first top surface that is substantially parallel to the top surface of the substrate; and removing the first portion of the first layer after the inducing of the strain in the first layer of the stack of MTJ layers.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the second portion of the first layer has a second top surface having a curved shape, and wherein the second portion of the first layer of the stack of MTJ layers is relatively free of defects after the removing of the first portion of the first layer of the stack of MTJ layers.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the defects are selected from the group consisting of vacancies, pinholes and dislocations.
 12. The method of claim 9, wherein the first layer includes a plurality of layers, wherein each layer in the plurality of layers is formed of a different material.
 13. The method of claim 9, wherein the stack of MTJ layers includes a second layer formed of a different material than the first layer, and wherein inducing strain in the first layer of the stack of MTJ layers includes inducing strain the second layer to cause defects in the second layer to migrate from a fourth portion of the second layer to a third portion of the second layer.
 14. The method of claim 9, wherein the removing of the first portion of the first layer includes removing the third portion of the second layer after the inducing of the strain in the first and second layers of the stack of MTJ layers.
 15. A method comprising: forming a conductive layer on a top surface of a substrate; modifying the conductive layer to have a curved top surface; forming a stack of magnetic tunneling junction (MTJ) layers on the curved top surface of the conductive layer, wherein the stack of MTJ layers includes a first layer and a second layer disposed over the first layer, wherein the first layer and the second layer in the stack of MTJ layers have respective curved top surfaces, wherein defects associated with forming the first layer migrate to a first portion of the first layer during the forming of the stack of MTJ layers, wherein the curved top surface of the first layer in the stack of MTJ layers spans a first distance over the substrate and the curved top surface of the second layer in the stack of MTJ layers spans a second distance after the forming of the stack of MTJ layers, wherein the first and second distances are measured along a first direction that is substantially parallel to the top surface of the substrate; and removing the first portion of the first layer that contains defects.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the modifying of the conductive layer to have the curved top surface includes performing a sputter etching process.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein the modifying of the conductive layer to have the curved top surface includes performing an isotropic etching process.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein a second portion of the first layer remains after the removing of the first portion of the first layer that contains defects, and wherein the second portion of the first layer includes a segment of the curved top surface of the first layer.
 19. The method of claim 15, wherein the first layer is a first ferromagnetic layer.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the second layer is a second ferromagnetic layer, and wherein the stack of MTJ layers further includes a non-magnetic dielectric layer disposed between and interfacing with the first ferromagnetic layer and the second ferromagnetic layer. 